Signe, who had obtained a cigar from Leonardo, leaned against the railing as if she were used to it and put the tip in her mouth. The way she pulled a Zippo lighter from her pocket, flipped the lid open, and lit it while shielding the wind with her hand lent credibility to her being a smoker. No wonder she had no aversion to the strong smoke. Judging by the faded surface of the lighter, she seemed to be quite the tobacco enthusiast.
Her grumbling continued as the sunset raced along the railway. She said that if she looked like him, she’d walk with her neck held high. She also threw envious jabs, asking what kind of man had such long eyelashes.
It ended with regret over not bringing the camera she occasionally carried. She said that if she took a photo of his face and displayed it at a stall for sale, she might earn as much money as posters of famous actors. The way she enumerated concrete plans made her look money-minded, as if she really were the shop owner’s daughter.
"How about an 8-to-2 split for the profits? Of course, you get 8, I get 2."
Leonardo inhaled nothing but smoke with an indifferent expression beside her. Though he didn’t usually like frivolous talk, it was fine for passing the time, so he let her indulge whatever fantasies she wished.
On the other hand, he was freshly reminded that his face wasn’t that well-known to the public. He had heard that the Council had confiscated all photos related to "Leonardo Blaine," but the fact that a woman who should be interested in all sorts of things didn’t recognize his face gave him hope that he might be able to walk around without a cap and face mask.
Though she continued to press him about why he had covered his face, he didn’t answer. She also tried to indirectly ask about his occupation, but that wasn’t something he could answer either. So Signe seemed to have concluded on her own that he was a rookie actor or model from some troupe whose name wasn’t known. Saying she finally understood, she pretended to be close, saying it was fortunate to have made his acquaintance before he became more famous.
"So that's why you were so wary of the people in the adjacent seat? Afraid they might recognize you."
Leonardo, who was tapping ash into the ashtray installed on the deck, turned around with a puzzled look.
"...You knew? That I was concerned about them?"
"It takes one to know one. I'm often told I have good intuition. That's what happens when you live with a terrifying sister."
Signe continued, boasting unnecessarily:
"Did your face get exposed while eating a sandwich when I briefly went to the bathroom? They were subtly staring at you."
Leonardo, who was about to answer no, trailed off and concluded ambiguously with, "I'm not sure." It wasn’t true that his face had been exposed to the knights in the adjacent seat, but he couldn’t explain the specific reason he was avoiding them. It would be too much to explain to others about the home invasion followed by the explosion incident. He just made up an excuse that "people stare at my face too much," letting her think as she pleased.
Then Signe, as if she were his bodyguard, placed one hand on her waist and squared her shoulders.
"I'll protect you, so stick close to me. I was thinking of taking on personal protection requests as a side job later, so this can be a practice run."
"...Hey, personal protection isn't a game. It's something people in real mortal danger request with a desperate mindset, like clutching at straws. And what do you mean by a practice run, when someone is being serious?"
"I'm serious too! Despite appearances, I was called the sheriff of Riverside..."
As he listened to her exploits, which didn’t seem very credible, he occasionally felt presences flickering and disappearing beyond the door behind them. He hadn’t paid much attention, since Signe’s presence had distracted him in a different way. However, as the same phenomenon repeated several times, he began to worry that they might have occupied this space for too long.
Thinking about it, with so many passengers, they wouldn’t all smoke only inside the cabins. As Leonardo turned his head to glance behind, Signe, who had almost finished her cigar, rubbed out the ash in the ashtray and dusted off her hands. Soon, she looked down at the military watch on her wrist and said:
"It seems we're almost there, shall we go back inside? Let's go to our seats, organize our luggage, and if we sit for just a little while, we'll arrive soon."
"We'll arrive soon?"
Leonardo, who had also stubbed out his cigarette after her, asked in surprise. It was because he hadn’t realized so much time had passed.
The setting sky had held its mysterious light and seemed to have stopped, making it particularly difficult to gauge. The train was heading toward the central region, so it wasn’t an area where one could see the midnight sun in terms of latitude. As Leonardo blinked and looked up at the sky, Signe stood at the door they were entering and added an explanation:
"Oh right, there's one more interesting thing about the station of beginning and end. The day and night are reversed, as if time flows backward compared to the surrounding areas. The sky will probably brighten soon there. See, it's not dark even now, right?"
"...Is that possible? For the sun to rise only in a specific region?"
"It's not that the sun rises, but the sky just brightens. You'll understand what I mean when you see it directly. Ugh, it's cold after staying out for so long. Let's go inside now."
Signe shivered and pulled the door with force. The steam that had filled the inside gushed out, brushing past Leonardo’s cheeks and hair. Beyond his momentarily blurred vision, he could see the door of the inter-car corridor on the opposite side firmly closed.
'People must have been coming and going frequently.'
Otherwise, there would be no reason for steam to fill the inter-car corridor, which was separated from the tail car by a door. However, it was puzzling that not a single person had come to the deck despite this. Normally, if someone had come this far to smoke, they would have opened the door at least once.
'Can they tell from inside that there are people here?'
He tilted his head in wonder, but his thoughts didn’t last long, since Signe’s hand, exposed to the cold wind, had turned red. Leonardo immediately followed her inside.
He had just thought she talked a lot, but now he realized she had deliberately spent time with him, knowing he was uncomfortable with the adjacent seat. At first, he had considered her just an annoying guide, but she seemed like a decent person as time went on. Though he had never seen a truly good person among those who claimed to have good intuition... she wasn’t bad overall, so she would likely receive much love from her peers and seniors after enlisting.
Leonardo pulled up his face mask again, pressed down his cap, and touched the back of his neck. Thinking he should give the chick some pocket money before parting, he deliberately created a warm breeze around them.
*****
By the time they returned to their seats after traversing the long passenger car, the interior was quite quiet. It wasn’t because there were no people. Since it was like the middle of the night, most were leaning against their seats, tired and asleep. In the adjacent seat as well, except for the one on watch, all had their arms crossed and eyes closed. As expected of His Lordship’s knights, their posture was similar to when Agrizendro briefly rested his eyes on the peninsula.
Between large regions, there were more fields than urban areas, so there was little floating population and few people preparing to disembark. Perhaps because of this, the conductor’s voice announcing the arrival station hadn’t been heard for a while. As a result, Leonardo helped Signe pack her luggage while minimizing rustling sounds.
"Give me the patrol pack. I'll carry it for you."
"Oho, what's this? Suddenly being kind?"
"I've always been kind."
Signe unfastened the leather buckle and handed one of the modular bags she’d separated to Leonardo. Leonardo, who naturally slung it over one shoulder, gauged the weight by supporting Signe’s military gear with his palm.
Occasionally, one of the knights in the adjacent seat glanced at them, but he deliberately didn’t look in that direction. Instead, he stared at the outside scenery that was gradually brightening, as Signe had said.
Though he had often seen day and night change while crossing regions, there were almost no cases where a special phenomenon occurred only near a single station. Even if the climate was different, it was common sense that time couldn’t flow differently from the neighboring region—unless it was a situation like when the battalion commanders of the Council cast Pentagon to create strong gravity just before eliminating the mother body.
Signs occasionally passed by outside the window. The smaller ones went by too quickly to confirm their content, but the letters on the old platform erected in the distance were clearly visible.
[ Exordium et Exitus ]
Birth and death. It was a phrase befitting the station name, beginning and end. Though it was unknown who had engraved it, it was a very old sign, worn and missing teeth, bearing the marks of time. Just then, as the train reduced speed, the letters formed an even clearer image.
The two of them, having roughly organized their seats, folded the table they had spread out and tried to move to the end of the passenger car where the exit was. Signe led the way, and Leonardo, passing through the corridor, glanced at the adjacent seat {N•o•v•e•l•i•g•h•t} one last time.
Since returning to their seats, they hadn’t shown the same interest in him as before. Just as he was taking that as fortunate, one of the knights who had been sitting motionless slowly opened his eyes. He fixed his gaze straight ahead and opened his mouth in a flat voice:
"Hey."
Leonardo, who paused, turned his eyes to him. Though he wondered if he was being addressed, the knight didn’t look at him. Just as he was about to continue on, feeling embarrassed as if he were making a fuss alone, the knight pressed something firmly into his drooping hand. It wasn’t a dry, rustling texture of paper.
"Check it after getting off."
"......."
Though his eyelids twitched, Leonardo reflexively grasped what had landed in his hand. The knight closed his eyes again as if nothing had happened.
Only the one on watch sitting across from him stared at Leonardo blankly, then jerked his chin as if telling him to hurry up for dawdling.
Leonardo, who briefly scanned them, followed Signe with a composed expression. However, he was thoroughly flustered inside. His pace gradually quickened. The lips hidden under his face mask went completely stiff.
'What is this?'
Though he didn’t know the intent, by the feel it seemed like a neatly folded napkin. Given that he was told to check it after getting off, it seemed to have something written on it, but it didn’t feel like ordinary content at all.
Could it be that they had noticed his identity? Were they secretly approaching to deliver His Grace’s message? If so, since when had they known? One speculation followed another.
However, Leonardo first carried out the instruction the knight had given. Until the train stopped, he stood with Signe in front of the disembarkation stairs, engaging in brief conversation, without looking at the note even once. His mind was elsewhere, and none of the conversation registered.
A moment later, just like when departing from the first station, the train’s iron wheels gradually reduced speed. Outside the window, a boarding platform much smaller than Riverside Station unfolded. There were only two boarding gates, each going in a different direction, with no spacious waiting room or bustling people in sight.
The first impression was of a small, cozy rural station. As the train completely stopped, emitting steam, the exits attached to each passenger car opened simultaneously.
"Let's get off."
Signe, rotating her stiff shoulders, stepped down the stairs in big strides. Leonardo also hurried down. Besides the two of them, no other passengers disembarked. Only a station attendant who had come out to check the disembarking personnel confirmed the two people standing in the middle of the empty platform, then boarded the train again.
"Hmm—. Wow, look at how good the air is already. The weather is clear today too, so the scenery by the lake will be amazing."
Signe, who said she was visiting for the first time in quite a while since her sister became busy, seemed quite excited. Rather than coming as a guide, she sounded like she was on a picnic.
"Before we go, let's just leave our luggage inside the station building. The path isn't well-paved, so if we go like this, it's too... Teo?"
When she suddenly turned around because there was no answer, her view caught Leonardo wearing a rather serious expression. He was looking at something in his hand. The pupils in his eyes, ambiguously either gold or brown, were contracted, and the area beneath his eyes trembled slightly. Signe, who had been staring, blinked and casually asked:
"What are you looking at?"
She took a step forward and peered around Leonardo, but it wasn’t clear, covered by his hand. She only recognized that what he was clutching was a napkin.
Leonardo unconsciously swallowed hard. The note he had unfolded as soon as he got off had this written on it:
You're being followed
The beating of his heart grew louder, resonating in his ears like a drum. Countless questions rose in his mind.
'Since when?'
He immediately turned around. Just then, the train’s exit closed, and through the gap, a figure was faintly reflected. However, it was too fleeting to make out the exact appearance. The train sounded a long whistle once more, then began to roll its iron wheels toward the next station along with steam.
The windows, densely arranged, had curtains drawn, so the inside could no longer be seen. Leonardo couldn’t tear his eyes away until the train completely left the station of beginning and end. He stood there for a while, as if his feet were glued to the ground.
